Chapter 132: Romagna

On May 5th, a big event happened in Florence that shocked everyone!

At noon on the same day, a few popular guards smashed down a shop that specialized in making jewelry for the rich and noble, according to the anti-luxury law, and there were many such shops in Florence, because of the strong artistic atmosphere, and it was not only Jews who did this kind of gold and silver artisan's business.

When the popular guards came to the door, the owner of the gold shop obediently took out a metal plate engraved with the consul's face, apparently hoping to prove his loyalty to the consul in this way.

Unfortunately, this did not save his shop, and the guards carefully put away the metal plates, and then rushed into the gold shop with their clubs.

The madness angered the shopkeeper, who had thought he would be spared, and in anger he rushed up and grabbed the plate and smashed it on the ground.

This was clearly a terrible act, and the shopkeeper was immediately knocked to the ground in the street, and the popular guards beat him with sticks, poking him in the stomach with scabbards, and when someone shouted that it was "blasphemy against the consul", all eyes showed a cruel murderous intent.

The goldsmith was immediately hung on a tree by the side of the road, and no one listened to his wails and cries, but they put a rope around his neck and pulled it hard.

Watching the owner of the gold shop kick and twitch in the air, and even kick off the foot of a shoe in pain, the popular guards stood in the street and shouted to the crowd around them that "this is the end of rebellion and blasphemy against the Supreme Archon."

There was no sound in the street except for the dying struggles of the shopkeepers and the shouts of the people's guards, as if all the people standing nearby were deaf and dumb puppets.

People watched coldly, watching the shopkeeper's feet gradually lose their strength, watching the public guards shouting loudly.

Suddenly, a stone thrown out of nowhere struck the shoulder of a popular defender who didn't look like an adult, and the force of the stone was so great that it directly knocked the child to the ground!

The Popular Defenders were immediately furious, and they rushed into the crowd to find out who dared to openly challenge the authority of the consuls.

This time, a lot of people didn't move.

They did not resist but stood still, allowing the popular defenders to push and reprimand but not obediently give way.

Another stone came out of the crowd, this time hitting the face of the leader among them.

The blood flowed immediately, which infuriated the popular guard, who angrily drew his sword and threatened the citizens in front of him, and when he rushed into the crowd and found nothing but indifferent eyes, he couldn't stop swinging his sword and cursing loudly.

At this moment, the popular defender felt the sword in his hand suddenly froze, followed by the exclamations of the people!

He turned his head and saw first the blood on his arm, then a blush on the tip of his sword, and when he followed the string of blood, he saw a woman lying on the ground.

His sword slashed through the woman's neck, and the sharp blade slashed directly through the woman's throat, and blood splattered out, staining her skirt and the ground in front of her.

This popular defender looked at the scene in front of him a little sluggishly, this woman was dressed plainly, her hands were dry and stiff, and her hair was also yellow and yellow, this was a typical ordinary woman, a woman from a commoner family who was not wealthy.

Blood kept spurting, the woman didn't support it at all for a while and then she was silent, before she died, she seemed to want to grab her throat, but her hands could only stiffen in front of her chest, her eyes were hollow, there was not even anger and fear in it, only incomprehension and confusion about all this.

It was still silent, still silent, but the popular guards felt the change in the eyes of the people around them.

It was anger, a madness that had been suppressed for too long.

A deafening dull gunshot suddenly exploded!

The killer fell to the ground screaming, a hole in his chest, and the projectiles tore through his clothes and skin on his chest, and then knocked him to the ground.

This is a terrible wound that can only be inflicted by heavy muskets!

The sudden attack caused the popular defenders to draw their swords in terror, and they gathered in a circle and shouted loudly, looking for the enemy in the crowd.

"Catch the murderer! They are executioners! ”

Almost at the same time as the gunshots rang out, a roar rang out from the silent but ready crowd!

No one knew who made the cry, but the sound seemed to hypnotize everyone.

People began to press on the popular defenders, ignoring the weapons that were swinging in their hands, and just approaching step by step, and approaching again.

The circle of the popular defenders shrank smaller and smaller, and they huddled close to each other, looking in horror at the crowd that was much larger than them.

At that moment, another gunshot rang out.

This time it was close, even right in front of them.

A musket in the hand of a man who looked like an ordinary citizen was still smoking, and the muzzle of the gun was almost against the face of a popular defender who had not paid any attention to him because of his panic, and white smoke was still emitting.

Everything was so sudden, and both sides, who were already close together, first paused sluggishly, and then didn't know who first issued a "Kill!" Shouts.

The crowd around them crowded forward, and at some point a sharp saber suddenly appeared and stretched out of the crowd.

The people's defenders began to wave their weapons frantically in order to protect themselves, and as several screams rang out in the crowd one after another, the crowd finally broke out completely!

The shouts, the curses, the slashing sound of almost any weapon that could be held in their hands, the entire street was filled with angry citizens who had become uncontrollable and rushed towards the popular defenders.

The popular guards were drowned out almost instantly, their screams annihilated in the roar of anger before they could even reach the nearest circle, except for the incessant flickering of tools with strings of blood beads in the air, stones, and stabbing halberds.

Suddenly, there was a shout from the crowd, and then a corpse that had been beaten to a bloody point was lifted alof.

Corpses were poked through the streets in halberds, swords, poles, and forks, and a name that had previously been admired and worshipped by the people had made them feel terrified even at the slightest doubt.

Savonarola!

But this time, when his name was mentioned, more and more people began to shout "Liar!" ", "hypocrites", and "tyrants"!

The crowd that followed the corpses through the streets gathered more and more, and the shouts of the people became high-pitched and undisguised.

Some of the popular defenders who rushed to hear the news tried to stop and arrest the troublemakers, but when they saw the bodies of their comrades in the air from a distance, they were terrified.

The Popular Defenders began to flinch in front of the moving crowd, and then some began to turn around and flee.

"Go and punish the real criminals!" A man suddenly jumped onto the marble pedestal of a statue, and he shouted to the crowd, "Pull out the tyrant who made us suffer from the monastery, and make the random wreckage of innocent men and women pay for our suffering!" ”

The crowd was silent at first, and then someone began to respond, and at the same time someone shouted to the people who were still at a loss: "Who made us not have enough to eat?" Who broke into our homes and destroyed our precious possessions? Who is it that compels us to show our loyalty to Him alone every day? It is the one who blasphemed God and even wanted to replace God! ”

These words shocked everyone who heard them, and they were unwilling and afraid to think about it before, because they had already regarded that person as part of their faith in their minds, and people feared that once this idol in their hearts collapsed, they would lose their purpose.

Now someone finally said this thing that has been hidden in everyone's heart, but they have never dared to say it.

Blasphemy against God, in place of God?!

Once the idea was revealed, it could no longer be hidden, and there began to be noise and unease in the crowd, and when the man standing on the stone pedestal jumped down and rushed into the crowd, everyone rushed out of the way for him.

The man ran to the front of the crowd, and he looked at the panicked popular guards in the distance, a mocking smile on his face.

He pulled his musket from his waist, and as the action took out the weapons that had been prepared.

"They are afraid, those who usually profess to defend their leader to the death, they are like a swarm of maggots in the face of death, and it is time for us to take back what is rightfully ours," the man looked back at the citizens who had been stirred up, "Go to St. Mark's Abbey!" ”

This roar completely ignited the anger that had already been stirred up in people's hearts!

The flow of people began to roll through the streets, and they walked onto the old bridge, which was already in a state of depression, past the Arno River, past the Baptistery and the already devastated University of Florence.

There were more people in the streets than before, some armed men were ahead, their angry accusations attracted more people, and when they took to the crossroads, there were already people who were loudly announcing that these people called themselves "enraged" out of excitement and righteous indignation.

The people rushed to St. Mark's Abbey, their speed was fast, while others, who seemed to have been prepared for the crowd near the monastery, had already burst into the monastery when they saw the crowd at the end of the street, and they quickly subdued the friars and several popular guards who had seen the bad attempt to close the monastery gates, and then these people pushed open the gates of St. Mark's Abbey with gust of effort to the cheers of the crowd in the distant street.

People rushed into the monastery, and they frantically chased after those who were clearly the defenders of the people.

No mercy was shown to them, and screams rang out in every corner of the monastery in an instant.

But some of them, apparently not interested in the popular guards, walked through the monastery towards the remote courtyard, and when they saw several people standing at the door of the narrow courtyard trying to stop them, the man who had jumped on the sculpture smiled earlier.

He raised the musket in his hand and pointed it at the door, and when he saw that some of them refused to dodge despite the fear on their faces, he shot without hesitation.

One man immediately fell to the ground with a gun, and before the others could scream, the self-proclaimed "enraged" had already raised their weapons and lunged at them.

These "enraged men" were apparently real soldiers, and they cleanly dealt with the few who had no power to fight back, but when they tried to kill them on the spot, they were stopped by their leader.

"They're still useful," the leader strode past the men who had fallen to the ground groaning, and then his eyes fixed on the closed wooden door of the little house, "and now it's time to see the man, and I hope he hasn't let us down." ”

Listening to the leader's words, the "enraged ones looking at the wooden door" showed excitement.

On May 5, 1498, there was a riot in Florence.

The chief consul, Savonarola, and several of his followers were arrested by an angry populace at the monastery of St. Mark, and Savonarola's rule was overthrown.

Alexandria heard the news of Florence the next day, and just 2 days earlier, the Duke of Pisa had just announced the Succession Treaty of Pisa.

According to the treaty, in the future, once Tomneo himself became an heir, the Count of Montina, as the protector of Pisa, had the right to appoint an heir to Pisa, who would inherit the Duke of Pisa's claim to the Lombard Iron Crown along with the Duke of Pisa.

When Tomneo stood at the table, holding the huge seal of the Duke of Pisa in his hand, and looked at the proclamation in front of him, the hearts of everyone in the main hall lifted.

They didn't know if the Duke would do anything unexpected or even drastic next, and many of them couldn't help but secretly tighten their corners and belts.

As if sensing the tension, Tomneo looked up at the nobles who were staring at him, first with a sarcastic smile on the corners of his mouth, and then pressed the seal on the proclamation with force and cleanliness in his hand.

"Bang"

The heavy clatter seemed to be heard echoing through the hall, but as the seal fell, all hearts fell, for or against.

From this day on, the future of Pisa will be tied to a child who has not yet been born.

There was one person who did not attend this momentous audience, but no one would ignore her presence.

In a house by a small river in the city of Pisa, Lucrezia Borgia listened to the description of Ulliu, who had hurried back to report the news, and her eyes narrowed in a line of joy.

"You will be the Duke of Pisa in the future," Lucrezia stroked her bulging belly, feeling the restlessness full of life in it, and gently closed her eyes, "You will definitely become a man of your father's pride, and you are a Borgia, you are destined to be born not ordinary." ”

Listening to Lucrezia's whispering, Ulliu's lips moved as he stood opposite.

He was eager to remind the lady in front of him that the old man might not like to hear her words.

It was clear that the strong antipathy towards the Borgia family had made Alexander unhappy when he heard the surname.

But thinking about the other young lady of the Rovelle family who seemed to be more persistent and loyal to the family, the Moors suddenly felt that only Miss Tsusha seemed to be the most intimate with the master.

"It's still Miss Earl who can be relied on." Uliuu pondered in his heart.

The determination of Pisa's future heir did not make ordinary people feel anything out of the ordinary, they still only cared about their own lives, and they still only cared about how much that transaction would bring them.

The aristocrats and merchants, on the other hand, would never think the way ordinary people, they knew that a new era was coming, and some even thought that when Tomneo pressed the seal, it would actually mean his abdication.

No one knew that after signing the declaration of inheritance, Tomneo had another document in his pocket, which was a credit note worth 70,000 florins, which would allow the Tomnio family to receive a substantial annuity from the FTA every year.

Because of the attention caused by the declaration of inheritance, the news of the death of King Charles did not attract much attention in Pisa.

France is too far away, after all, and although Charlie's invasion has only been a little over a year, people have gradually forgotten about it.

Only Alexander, who heard the news, had insomnia that night.

Lucrezia, who woke up from her sleep, felt empty next to her, and she immediately opened her eyes uneasily and looked around.

Then she saw Alexander, leaning against the window, looking up at the night sky outside.

The silver moonlight shining through the window on Alexander's face fascinated Lucrezia, and she felt the urge to find a skilled sculptor to sculpt Alexander's current appearance, which she believed would be a beautiful heirloom.

Sensing movement on the bed, Alexander turned his head slightly to see Lucrechia, who was lying on the bed looking at him.

"What are you thinking?" Lucrezia sat up slowly, feeling Alexander's vague preoccupation.

"Charlie is dead." Alexander whispered, noticing Lucrezia's dazed look in the darkness, and walked over to hug her softly, "Don't worry, no matter what happens, I will protect you and the child." ”

Lucrezia smiled, she felt happy now, with a beloved man and a child about to be born, she didn't need much anymore.

Alexander looked out the window again, knowing that Rome must be in chaos by this time.

For both the elder Rovere and the Borgia father and son, the death of King Charles of France had a great impact on them.

Thinking about the upheavals that would follow, and thinking about the great changes that would soon be ushered in by the Duke of Orleans, whether it was France or the entire Apennine Peninsula, Alexander couldn't help but feel a wave of inexplicable excitement in his heart.

As the long war in Italy is about to begin in earnest, are you lucky enough to be the victor in this long war, or may you finally fall and be annihilated in this turbulent and conflicted era?

Alexander suddenly felt lucky to be able to be a witness and part of this era.

"Lucrezia, our children will be special," Alexander whispered to Lucrezia, who was sleeping in his arms, "believe me, maybe one day you will be proud to be their mother." ”

On 5 May, three days after the proclamation of the Pisa succession, the Pisa Parliament issued a new regency decree.

According to the latest declaration of succession, the future heir to the Duke of Pisa has the right to be regent when the Duke is unable to govern, and if the heir himself is a minor, his or her parents have the right to act as regent on his or her behalf.

The decree was issued, and the whole of Pisa was shaken.

By this time, even the dullest knew that the brief era that belonged to Tomneo was over and that a new family of rulers had been born in Pisa.

And May 5th is destined to be a day that will bring a lot of shock to the people of Pisa.

In the middle of the night, as Alexander customarily lay on his bed with Lucrezia in his arms and whispered to her, a faint commotion came from the courtyard, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps on the stairs.

Soon there was a slight but tight knock on the door.

"What's wrong?" Lucrezia, who was resting quietly, immediately became nervous, and she looked at Alexander next to her uneasily.

"I'll go and see, don't worry, it'll be fine." Alexander whispered to reassure Lucrezia and walked to the door and gently opened the door through a crack.

Seeing Alexander's gloomy and frowning expression, several people standing at the door bowed a little uneasily.

They knew that Alexander's thoughts were now on Lucrezia, as evidenced by the fact that he had never left the house since he arrived in Pisa, except for that visit.

But these people had to bother Alexander overnight, because the news they had just heard was so important that it might even affect the future of Pisa.

"My lord, I have just received news that there has been a riot in Florence," said a Pisan nobleman with an excited expression, "Savonarola has been arrested, and the treasurer Sazzi has announced that he has succeeded Savonarola as the new Florentine consul." ”

When the nobleman made the report, the people standing in the corridor stared nervously at Alexander, waiting for his reaction when he heard the news.

Florence had such an impact on Pisa that some people even said that for Pisa, Florence was like a grumpy lover, who had to endure the moodiness of this lover at any time.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on Alexander standing at the door, but what they didn't expect was that Alexander didn't show any surprise when he heard the news.

Instead, the look on his face was more like a sigh of relief like "it's finally here", and then, in the midst of the anxious waiting, Alexander nodded and said, "I see." ”

Then, he slammed the door shut in the midst of a group of people inexplicably.

The officials stood there staring at each other in amazement, and they thought of the various reactions Alexander might have, such as surprise, shock, unease, excitement, or overjoy.

But they just didn't expect him to be so indifferent.

The officials, somewhat unwilling to get an answer, tried to remind Alexander again, but Uliu stood in their way.

Ulliu, respectfully but unequivocally, told the officers that the Count and Madame needed to rest, and that if there was anything they could do to visit after dawn to-morrow.

The officials stared at Uliu, annoyed but helpless, and though they were angry, no one came forward to rebuke the daring Moor.

I don't know when some rumors began to circulate in places like Pisa and Montina, and according to the rumors, there were several people around Alexander who could not be offended, including this very young Moorish young man.

On May 6th, Pisa was in a state of suspicion and discussion.

One of the most sensational news was that the Florentine emissary, Machiavelli, insisted on seeing the Count of Montina.

And the purpose of his request was to borrow troops from the Count to save Savonarola.

Machiavelli waited outside the little house for a whole day, and he was seen almost fainting from standing for too long, but in the end he did not see Alexander either.

On May 7, Alexander VI's private secretary, Nomerlo, came to Pisa.

He brought with him an edict given to Alexander by the Pope through the College of Cardinals.

Looking at the order on the edict, Alexander, who had seemed to be oblivious to what was happening in Florence for two days, finally smiled.

"Uliu, go and call everybody," Alexander cried out to the Moors standing in the foyer downstairs, looking up at him, "tell them to get ready for the march to Florence!" ”